This is a comprehensive inter-disciplinary research program to be carried out by twelve principal investigators describing twelve specific projects. This interdisciplinary group of scientists will study the effects of ethanol on the CNS at various levels of biological complexity. Our program plans to investigate the effects of ethanol at the molecular level of gene organization, transcription, translation, and biochemical genetics. The effect of ethanol and the course of infectious disease of the CNS will be investigated. At a higher level of biological complexity, the proposed research will utilize single neuronal cells and specific regions of brain tissue at the electrophysiological level. These studies will be simultaneously complemented by carrying out clinical studies on memory and other cognitive functioning in human subjects under acute and chronic exposure to ethanol. These human studies will include detailed examination of other behavioral and psychiatric manifestations associated with alcohol use as well as cerebral electrophysiological assessments, toxicological and clinical biochemical assays.